Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
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Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

            } else {
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    <link rel="canonical" href="https://im4change.in/<pre class="cake-error"><a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-trace').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-trace').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none');"><b>Notice</b> (8)</a>: Undefined variable: urlPrefix [<b>APP/Template/Layout/printlayout.ctp</b>, line <b>8</b>]<div id="cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-trace" class="cake-stack-trace" style="display: none;"><a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-code').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-code').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none')">Code</a> <a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-context').style.display = (document.getElementById('cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-context').style.display == 'none' ? '' : 'none')">Context</a><pre id="cakeErr67f34ae5c8c35-code" class="cake-code-dump" style="display: none;"><code><span style="color: #000000"><span style="color: #0000BB"></span><span style="color: #007700">&lt;</span><span style="color: #0000BB">head</span><span style="color: #007700">&gt;
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&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? 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&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,..."/>
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                <strong>Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam</strong></h1>
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                <br /><div align="justify"><em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br /></em><br />Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br /><br />Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br /><br />Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br /><br />Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br /><br />The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br /><br />Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br /><br />On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br /><br /></div>               </font>
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&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;,
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	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam&#039;,
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&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;&#039;,
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$metaTitle = &#039;LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam&#039;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,..."/>
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                <strong>Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam</strong></h1>
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                <br /><div align="justify"><em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br /></em><br />Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br /><br />Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br /><br />Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br /><br />Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br /><br />The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br /><br />Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br /><br />On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br /><br /></div>               </font>
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&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? 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&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can&#039;t be prosecuted due to his caste&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act&#039;s effectiveness in view of the &amp;ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&amp;rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &amp;ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&amp;rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &amp;ldquo;exhaustive definition&amp;hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&amp;rdquo;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge further observed: &amp;ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&amp;hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Holding that &amp;ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &amp;ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &amp;ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &amp;ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&amp;hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&amp;rdquo;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &amp;ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &amp;lsquo;Atrocities Act&#039; be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&amp;rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,..."/>
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                <strong>Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam</strong></h1>
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                <br /><div align="justify"><em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br /></em><br />Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br /><br />Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br /><br />Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br /><br />Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br /><br />The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br /><br />Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br /><br />On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br /><br /></div>               </font>
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		'title' => 'Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam',
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<div align="justify">
<em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br />
</em><br />
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br />
<br />
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br />
<br />
Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br />
<br />
The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br />
<br />
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br />
<br />
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br />
<br />
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...',
	'disp' => '<br /><div align="justify"><em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br /></em><br />Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br /><br />Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br /><br />Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br /><br />Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br /><br />The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br /><br />Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br /><br />On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br /><br /></div>',
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	'title' => 'Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam',
	'subheading' => '',
	'description' => '<br />
<div align="justify">
<em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br />
</em><br />
Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br />
<br />
Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br />
<br />
Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br />
<br />
The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br />
<br />
The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br />
<br />
On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br />
<br />
The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br />
<br />
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Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste

Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,...'
$disp = '<br /><div align="justify"><em>Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste<br /></em><br />Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country.<br /><br />Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the &ldquo;changing socio-economic scenario&rdquo; as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago.<br /><br />Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.&rdquo;<br /><br />Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as &ldquo;inclusive and not exhaustive&rdquo;, the Judge pitched for an &ldquo;exhaustive definition&hellip;so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion&rdquo;.<br /><br />The Judge further observed: &ldquo;Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the&hellip;vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.&rdquo;<br /><br />Holding that &ldquo;any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,&rdquo; Ms. Lau said: &ldquo;The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. &ldquo;Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?&rdquo; Ms. Lau said.<br /><br />On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: &ldquo;The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity&hellip;does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.&rdquo;<br /><br />The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. &ldquo;It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the &lsquo;Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,&rdquo; Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.<br /><br /></div>'
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Some provisions of Prevention of Atrocities Act discriminatory: Judge by Jiby Kattakayam

Mirchpur Dalit naib tehsildar can't be prosecuted due to his caste Drawing upon a couple of instances in the Mirchpur caste violence trial in which the Judge was constrained by two sub-sections of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, to sentence three convicted Jat men to life imprisonment offering no judicial discretion for a lighter sentence, and the neglect of duties by a Dalit naib tehsildar of Mirchpur village who could not be prosecuted under the Act as he was a Dalit, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau on Monday made some critical observations on the Act that was framed by Parliament taking into account discrimination/oppression based on caste and the harsh realities of social life of the Dalits and Adivasis in the country. Noting that judicial pronouncements are an important source for the legislature in auditing welfare legislations, the Judge called for a re-evaluation of the Act's effectiveness in view of the “changing socio-economic scenario” as it was framed in 1989, over 20 years ago. Ms. Lau said: “Atrocity is the wrong of the grossest kind and all atrocities are crime against humanity. The Act deals with atrocities, but restricts its operation to the particular groups based upon caste. Instances are not rare where powerful members of a clan commit atrocity over less fortunate members of the same clan/caste/community. Atrocities which deals with crimes/offences against humanity should not, in my view, be restricted to particular castes or groups. Just as an offender or a violator of law has no caste, creed, race, sex or religion and so does the victim.” Terming Section 3 of the Act, which prescribes punishment for various caste atrocities as “inclusive and not exhaustive”, the Judge pitched for an “exhaustive definition…so as to cover all atrocities inflicted on any citizen of this country irrelevant of caste, creed, race, sex, or religion”. The Judge further observed: “Community and caste-based violence can be prevented by inclusive and interactive political process to subdue the poisonous fanaticism of divisive communal thinking. Caste distinctions are often exploited by those wanting to cultivate discontent and instigate violence and the only effective safeguard is the…vigour of the democratic politics in generating tolerant values.” Holding that “any legislative distinction in the implementation of penal provisions on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth [as provided under Article 15 of the Constitution] weakens the secular democratic fibre leading to polarisation,” Ms. Lau said: “The SC/ST Act is one such legislation whose provisions create a distinction on the ground of caste in matters of imposition of sentence in case of certain offences [Section 3 (2) (iv) and (v)] thereby creating an anomalous situation, where on the one hand it provides a stringent punishment for imprisonment for life in case if the victim of atrocity is member of scheduled caste/ scheduled tribes ([community] and the violator is a not a member of the community, but would let go a violator who is a member of SC/ST (irrespective of whether the victim is a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member or not).” The Judge said that for a victim who is not a member of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe community, the punishment provided to the violator for the same offence would be under the Indian Penal Code, which provides for judicial discretion in matters of imposition of punishment. This could be lesser than that provided under the SC/ST Act. “Why this distinction when the crime committed is the same and the victim suffers as much?” Ms. Lau said. On Section 4 of the Act, the Judge said: “The provisions of Section 4 on the one hand let go a member of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes who commits the same crime of non-performance/neglect of duties in relation to the provisions of the Act, but punishes a person who is not a member of the community. Why so? Is it not a palpable discrimination? To my mind the provisions of Section 4 when subjected to judicial scrutiny and tested on the touchstone of Constitutional validity…does not fulfil the constitutional test and object sought to be attained by this special legislation, there being no rational or logic in creating this exception.” The Judge remarked that these issues came up for consideration during trial and are being left open for scrutiny by competent authorities. “It is this, that has made me ponder if it was not time that the ‘Atrocities Act' be made caste-neutral with a provision for uniform punishment for all violators irrespective of caste distinctions,” Ms. Lau, said, adding that a copy of the judgment be sent to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha to be placed before the concerned committee dealing with legislative matters.